And, just as on “Idol,” there’s been plenty of backstage drama surrounding the competition.

China Photo/ Getty Images

Li Yuchun, winner of the 2005 edition of “Happy Girls,” performing at the Beijing Pop Music Awards in January

This week’s bombshell involves the sudden withdrawal of one of the most popular contenders on the show. Gong Mi, an 18-year-old student at the Beijing Film Academy, drew attention early on in the contest, not so much for her singing skills as for her uncanny resemblance to Hong Kong starlet Cecilia Cheung, one of the women involved in last year’s Edison Chen “photo-gate” scandal. Gong was soon nicknamed “little Cecilia Cheung” by the media, while her appearance fueled speculation about whether or not she had undergone cosmetic surgery.

But just as tens of thousands of Chinese Internet users were debating whether Gong deserved to make it through to the top 60, she failed show up for the next round of the competition. The show’s producers later confirmed that Gong had withdrawn from “Happy Girls” for health reasons (report in Chinese here). Viewers of the show have added some of their own reasons: Many believe that Gong was only seeking a bit of publicity by signing up for “Happy Girls;” Her aim achieved, she can now pursue stardom without going through the rest of the singing contest. Others suspect that her sudden celebrity may have displeased authorities.

“The reason might be the pressure from State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television (Sarft),” wrote blogger Xiaotanxiaoxiao, “there has been too much publicity about Gong Mi, which violated Sarft’s rules.”

To get the green light to relaunch its singing competition (formerly known as “Super Girls”) this year, Hunan Satellite TV had to agree to certain conditions imposed by Sarft designed to limit the “sensationalization” of the show, including and a ban on publicity regarding the private lives of contestants (see also this report in Chinese). The conditional approval for “Happy Girls” came after Hunan TV’s attempt to host a similar contest in 2008 was cancelled due to criticism that it promoted vulgarity and overnight celebrity.

Apart from “little Cecilia Cheung,” this year’s contest has also seen the early departure of a 79-year-old retired teacher, Wu Baiwei, who was dubbed “China’s Susan Boyle.” Although Wu gained the adoration of many fans, the judges booted her from the show after considering her age and health issues. The show’s producer’s have also had to contend with several female impersonators who tried to find a way around “Happy Girls’” strict single-sex rules (report in Chinese here).

Though figures on the current season’s audience aren’t yet available, the number of applicants was over 150,000, comparable to the number of people who signed up to audition for “Super Girls” in 2005, the peak season of that show’s three-year run. That year, the season finale drew an estimated 400 million viewers, and sponsorship fees for the entire season totaled 1.3 billion yuan ($190.2 million), said Li Hao, a Hunan Satellite TV spokesman, according to a report on the broadcaster’s Web site.

For advertisers, the show also provides a golden opportunity. In 2005, dairy producer Mengniu reportedly paid 50 to 60 million yuan for exclusive naming rights. This year, the title sponsor is BBK Electronics, a leading domestic manufacturer of DVD players.

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com.